Love Jihad Protested by Muslim Garba Teacher and His Students from all Communities

Sep 24, 2014 Tushita Politics 0

Flouting the threats given out by right-wing groups such as Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal, directing organizers to keep Muslims away from Garba venues as a drive against “love jihad”, Mohammad Irshad Mansuri, a proficient Garba dancer eagerly awaits navratris.

With nine evenings of Navratri celebrations fast approaching, Mohammad Irshad Mansuri, 43, is dishing out last-minute Garba dancing tips to his students.

Irshad was 14 when he started taking part in Garba dancing events and for over two decades now, he has been holding the classes himself. After all these years, he doesn’t like being told that as a Muslim Garba enthusiast, he is an oddity.

“Garbas represent the country’s rich cultural heritage. If the country’s youth don’t participate in it, who will? If we dance together, it binds us even further. I am running classes since 27 years and there have been no harassment or anything with my girl students,” says Irshad.

The diktat is part of a campaign against “love jihad” or what these groups describe as an Islamist agenda to seduce and convert Hindu girls. The campaign has angered Irshad and others like him.

Irshad, who is considered an expert in the different steps associated with the Ras Garbas, teaches around 300 boys and girls from different communities. He strongly feels that for garba revellers, talk of love jihad is pointless.

“Our teacher is a Muslim. There are students here who are from different communities, some Hindu, some Christian and some Jains. So why single out Muslims? There is no truth in love jihad. We have been dancing together since years. Why create an issue now?” said Siddhi Patel. Her friend Darshana Gandhi agreed.

“I don’t think there should be discrimination on the basis of religion. Whether Muslims, Jains, Khojas – all should be allowed to participate in the festival,” she said.

Though most of the organizers have so far resisted the “diktat”. At the same time, some of them have made identification cards mandatory for participants, though they maintain that it’s only for security. With just a few days left for the festival, the message from garba lovers is loud and clear — it’s time to dance and flow with the spirit of Navratri.

Source: NDTV

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Tushita

Tushita is a political writer at thenational.net. Her deep rooted interest in politics, passion for writing and craze for travelling define her. Writing since her school days, she aspires to write lifelong and make the world a happier place to live with the power of her pen.